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Toronto Mayor Rob Ford, seen outside the Osgoode Hall courthouse on Jan 7, is fighting for his political life as he tries to persuade a Divisional Court panel to overturn the decision that forced him from office over a violation of provincial conflict-of-interest law. (RICHARD LAUTENS / TORONTO STAR)

Half-way through his four-year term as Toronto Mayor, Rob Ford has delivered a fractious council and a fractured electorate. Many would love to rid the city of the divisive leader; many would feel cheated if he didn’t get to finish the term.

That’s why, all things considered, the best solution to the conflict-of-interest debacle that threatens to toss Ford from office is a court verdict that lets the mayor off the hook.

In essence, the panel of three judges in the appeal court can rescue city council and citizens from two tumultuous years.

No, it’s not the ideal solution. We’ve long passed that option. We are now into salvaging something that preserves some semblance of our local democracy and allows our citizenry to engage around civic matters without being cast into opposing camps.

A verdict cementing the status quo is no certainty. In fact, the judges will have to spy out a legal technicality or two to slide Ford back into office. But justices, honourable and learned though they may be, have been known to shade and straddle the law. The blunt penalty of a wise law snared a stubborn mayor and slammed him too heavily out of office. Wise jurists may devise a way to save his hide.

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If they fail to toss the mayor a lifeline, what should city council do? Asking councillors to set aside political partisanship may be asking too much, but they might consider seven guiding principles:

One. Do not appoint Rob Ford to the job, if the courts evict him. That would be contemptuous when so many palatable options exist. If Ford loses his appeal, only the voters should have the authority to override the judicial review and re-instate him.

Two. Councillor Doug Ford acts like a surrogate mayor but appointing him to fill his brother’s shoes would be unconscionable. He has not earned his spurs and his political senses are so un-tuned to municipal government that he is ill-fitted for city hall.

Three. If council is to appoint a Ford replacement, it should not select a councillor from the political left. It’s one thing for voters to lose, prematurely, the mayor they chose; replacing him with “the enemy” — as inarticulate as that might sound — is adding insult to injury.

Four. While it’s tempting to bring in an interim mayor from outside council, someone with the attendant skills needed to forge the disparate council into a team, that is an unwise move. Instead, choose from among the elected colleagues.

Five. If council is to appoint a replacement, it can do worse than tapping Deputy Mayor Doug Holyday. He shares the Ford agenda and has shown for the first time — now that he shares power — an ability to temper his impatience with the opposition.

Six. There is no need to appoint only an interim mayor who promises not to run for mayor in the 2014 general election. Yes, this will make the appointment very political and hotly contested; it is a serious job and should be vigorously sought by all councillors with an ambition for leadership. A two-year trial period will give us insights into the skills of at least one candidate who has the confidence of the majority of city council.

Seven. This goes back to the first principle. The only way voters can reinstate Ford is in an election. They do get a chance in 2014. But a byelection this spring provides for a more immediate and appropriate verdict; appropriate because the mayor’s mandate would have been aborted.

Follow the above and everyone won’t be happy. But justice and democracy triumph above the morass Ford has created. The mayor, hanging on by his finger nails, doesn’t deserve this; we do.

Royson James usually appears Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. Email: rjames@thestar.ca

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